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The same cannot be said for music playback. Anything with lots of bass or percussion produced unpleasant buzzing effects at higher volume. The buzzing didn't go away when I switched to high-end earbuds, so I don't fault the uncomfortable set bundled with the unit. Corroborating my observations, the E100 earned a score of 70 on the PC World Test Center's signal-to-noise ratio tests (where a higher number means a cleaner signal); of the players we've tested recently, onlythe Archos 105did worse.
My biggest complaints about the E100, though, involve its unintuitive user interface. The way to toggle between loop and continuous play modes, for example, was not obvious; and I also couldn't figure out how to turn off the FM radio. The 46-page manual bundled with the device proved helpful, but not many buyers will have the patience to leaf through it, and many of the E100's features should be more readily accessible.
iRiver makes some slick and stylish portable music and media players, but the E100 isn't at the top of the list. Between its unprepossessing industrial design, ho-hum audio, and difficult user interface, I didn't find much to recommend it.
No dice iRiver. I'll have to get a Zune or a different iRiver.